18th Annual Spring ConferenceApril 1-5 2017

Healthy Start In The News

Strong Beginnings Shrinks African American Infant Mortality Rate August 18, 2016Fox News West Michigan The American Hospital Association recently awarded Strong Beginnings with a NOVA award for the improvement of community health. Working to improve birth outcomes for African American and Latino women in in Kent County, Michigan, the program has successfully cut the infant mortality rate of African Americans by half. The success of Strong Beginnings has earned the program a top spot in the local news.

National Public Health Week 2016June 6, 2016American Public Health Association National Public Health Week 2016 united health advocates, and community events were celebrated nationwide. Nearly 400 partners at the national, state, local and federal levels joined APHA in celebrating NPHW April 4-10. National Public Health Week is the country’s celebration of public health and highlights issues that are important to improving the nation. For more than 20 years, APHA has served as the lead organizer of NPHW, bringing together public health professionals and advocates each April. Our very own Program Manager, Rachael Ruffin, was present for APHA'S Healthy Happy Hour!

Secretary Burwell Visits TampaJanuary 29, 2016REACHUP, Inc. Secretary of U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Sylvia Burwell, attended New Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, Tampa, FL, on Sunday, January 10th at the 11:00 am service, to thank the Tampa Bay community for its ACA enrollment efforts. U.S. Congresswoman Kathy Castor and Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn attended her presentation, which was part of the ACA Faith Week-end of Action. Healthcare Navigators were available for insurance enrollment and dissemination of information immediately after service. The weekend finale was an invitation-only Roundtable Luncheon with community members and Secretary Burwell and her team to discuss challenges and barriers to enrollment and strategies for targeted outreach.
Estrellita “Lo” Berry, President and CEO of REACHUP, Inc. and Project Director of the Central Hillsborough Healthy Start Project, is a member of New Mt. Zion and served as one of the key hostesses for the event and participated in the Luncheon Roundtable. On Sunday afternoon, Secretary Burwell tweeted, “Enjoyed worshipping beside Lo Berry at Mt Zion in Tampa. TY to Lo & REACHUP for all that you do to support our work!”

DCF aims to reduce unsafe sleeping deaths in childrenMarch 28, 2015The Florida Times-UnionA 6-month-old girl is found dead after sleeping with her father, who tested positive for opiates and marijuana, on the couch Jan. 1.
A 2 1/2-month-old boy is found dead, facedown, on top of a blanket in a portable crib Feb. 4.
Earlier this month, a 2-month-old child is found dead after sleeping in the bed with its father. That death — so recent it hasn’t been added to the Department of Children and Families’ online database — is the ninth infant death in Duval County reported to the state so far this year.
Of those nine cases, seven reportedly involve unsafe sleeping practices.

Black Men Less Likely to Live to 65 in CT, NationMarch 16, 2015Public News ServiceConnecticut has plenty of major hospitals that offer the latest in technology, but a new report says too many young black men are disconnected from care and, as a result, are likely to live shorter lives.
Young black men have a difficult time accessing health services, said report coauthor Kenn Harris, project director for New Haven Healthy Start at The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven and president-elect of the National Healthy Start Association. Even when they do, the system does not generally understand their needs, he said, adding that the result is that they are living shorter lives.

Hillary Clinton Is Right, Every Child Must Be Considered 'Too Small to Fail'October 14, 2014The Huffington PostIn a recent Washington Post article it was reported that the federal Healthy Start program was changing and becoming more of a competitive grant program. That would be totally counterproductive to the stated goals of the program. Rather than cutting it, this program should be expanded to include even more children and focus on them from birth to five.

Healthy Start program educates young familiesOctober 13, 2014The Des Moines RegisterEarly in her pregnancy, Moe Moe Linn knew she needed some extra help preparing for her baby to arrive. From diapering to nutrition, she had little knowledge about caring for a newborn, and was also new to the U.S.
She signed up for Healthy Start, offered through Visiting Nurse Services of Iowa, after hearing about the program during a prenatal checkup. Through visits at her home in Des Moines, she learned tips to help her during the first few months following the birth of her daughter, Rachel Tun, last May.

City of New Orleans Health Department One of First in Nation to Receive National Accreditation June 24, 2014City of New Orleans - Press ReleaseNEW ORLEANS, LA – Today, the City of New Orleans announces receipt of national accreditation for the City’s health department through the independent organization that administers the national public health accreditation program; Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB). The health department is one of the first health departments across the country and the first in Louisiana to receive accreditation through the program which works to improve and protect the health of the public by advancing the quality and performance of the nation’s Tribal, state, local and territorial public health departments.